Olympic silver medalist Sara McMann (6-0) remained undefeated in her professional MMA career with a “Fight of the Night” win over Shayna Baszler (14-7) in a rousing three-round affair.

Wrestling specialist McMann and submission ace Baszler elected to duke out on the feet, and the exciting matchup resulted in unanimous decision that immediately drew criticism from many MMA pundits.

The contest served as the main event of Saturday’s Invicta Fighting Championships 2 event, which took place at Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kan., and streamed on InvictaFC.com.

Baszler set the tone to open the fight, working in and out with strikes while preventing McMann from utilizing her wrestling prowess. Instead, it was Baszler’s crisp Muay Thai that proved the difference in the early going, though McMann began to find rhythm with her own power punches late in the frame.

McMann came out swinging in the second round and eventually worked the contest to the floor. Baszler was more than comfortable on her back, waiting briefly for an opening to transition to top position while simultaneously attacking the legs. McMann kept her limbs safe and then struck from her back before Baszler launched into a kneebar. McMann pulled free in a rousing transition but was unable to circle up to the top until there was less than a minute remaining, when she worked all the way to her feet, where she actually worked to the back in the final seconds of the frame, but it was too late to turn the course of the round.

McMann came out swinging again in the third round and earned an early takedown, but the wrestler elected to back away and finish the fight in a standup battle. The two slugged it out until the final bell, including an incredible toe-to-toe flurry in the final seconds that left the crowd on their feet. It was generally McMann’s haymakers against Baszler’s crisp technique, though “The Queen of Spades” did wobble her opponent in the final seconds.

In the end, McMann was awarded a unanimous-decision win with scores of 29-28, 30-27 and 29-28 and in October will fight for the promotion’s first-ever 135-pound title. The pair was also awarded the evening’s “Fight of the Night” award, which included a $1,500 bonus for each fighter.
Davis stops Akano

In her first bout since a “Fight of the Year” candidate scrap with former Strikeforce champ Sarah Kaufman, Canadian Alexis Davis (12-5) earned a submission win over Japanese import Hitomi Akano (18-10).

Davis looked sharp in the opening round, earning the better of the striking exchanges on the feet with a combination of powerful kicks and crisp punches. Submission ace Akano looked for a takedown, but she wasn’t able to muscle her opponent to the floor and nearly made a massive mistake by exposing her back on a failed throw.

Davis looked even better to open the second, scoring a quick knockdown and then a takedown immediately after when Akano popped back up to her feet. Dominating the action on the floor with a noticeable size advantage, Davis simply mauled her opponent with ground and pound, including a nasty series of knees to the body, before eventually working to the back and sinking in a rear-naked choke. Akano tried to resist but was forced to tap at the 3:41 mark of the second frame.

Davis is now 4-1 in her past five fights and could potentially challenge for the promotion’s first 135-pound title later this year. Akano loses consecutive fights for just the second time in her career.
Carmouche, Hamasaki, Nunes impress in stoppage wins

Following a disappointing two-fight losing streak under the Strikeforce banner – the first two losses of her professional career – Liz Carmouche (6-2) earned her second Invicta FC 2 win, both of which came in impressive fashion.

After a back-and-forth opening round with opponent Kaitlin Young (7-6-1) that featured impressive striking from “Girl-Rilla” Carmouche took over in the second frame. A quick striking combination led to a slam takedown, where Carmouche eventually moved to mount. She transitioned to the back shortly after and used a series of heel kicks to set up the fight-ending rear-0naked choke, which came at the 3:34 mark of the second frame.

In her first North American appearance, Japanese Jewels champ Ayaka Hamasaki (8-0) kept her undefeated mark intact with a third-round submission win over Lacey Schuckman (7-5). Hamasaki took the fight to the floor early and often and looked frequently for a potential armbar. Schuckman defended the attempts well but was certainly behind on the scorecards when she finally succumbed to the hold with just 15 seconds left in the fight.

Brazilian Strikeforce vet Amanda Nunes (7-2) struggled early against a less experienced Raquel Pa’aluhi (2-3), but she weathered the early storm en route to a first-round submission win. Pa’aluhi scored an early takedown and nearly locked in a rear-naked choke, but when she elected to switch to an armbar attempt, Nunes swept to the back in a scramble and locked in her own choke, earning a tap at the 2:24 mark of the opening round.

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